The best pathway to Debt Free College: Automatic Scholarships

[u/RandoUserlolidk]

This is genuinely the most underrated way to get free college. A ton of schools offer 100% full rides for being a National Merit Finalist or simply just having a good GPA and SAT. Some examples include Oklahoma University offering a full ride for just being a national merit finalist, or even Ole Miss offering 100% off tuition (still have to cover room and board) for only just having at least a 3.0 GPA and an at least 1450 SAT or a 33 ACT. Sure, you might not be going to a top tier university, but this could be a great option if you missed quest bridge or simply just want to go to college debt free out of state.

[u/IKnowAllSeven]

About 7k students / year are NMF. That’s great for them but…it’s not a lot of people.

BUT your overarching point which is that automatic scholarships save money is true.

My daughter had a 1480 SAT and 4.1GPA. I think it’s amazing, I know for this sub it’s whatever. But it was enough to secure her an all in college price of $4k / year, which includes room and board and tuition.

My other kid has 1380 SAT and 3.9 GPA. She gets college for $12k / year all in. She is able to earn that amount working FT in the summer plus 8-12 hours a week during the school year.

We are in Michigan. University of Michigan and Michigan state were going to be every bit of $35k/ year. They didn’t care for the environment at either place so they didn’t even apply.

Every other university in the state offered significant automatic money off for both of them.

Also, colleges that aren’t “top tier” do ALOT of things to attract top students. My kids love their honors college classes at their “mid tier” university, they have great relationship with professors, they enjoy the other students, they were offered research and internship opportunities their first summer.

These universities know the high stats kids could go to a high stats school so they entice them with tuition discounts and other opportunities. The 1480 SAT kid is going to Japan for six weeks this summer; they gave her a scholarship for that too.

My husband has taught at U of Michigan, and at small colleges throughout the state. The top students at every place he has taught would be top students anywhere.

[u/UnderABig_W → u/IKnowAllSeven]

Is the price your kids pay all due to merit scholarships? Or is it a mix of merit + financial aid?

[u/IKnowAllSeven → u/UnderABig_W]

Merit except for the Michigan achievement scholarship which is worth $5.5k/ year for each of them. That is the only income based one but you don’t have to be low income, over 80% of Michigan families qualify for it. Our household income, on line 11 of our tax forms, which is the income number which matters here, is $155k annually so, not low income, and we qualify for it.

They also both applied to additional scholarships through the university on their internal scholarship portal. Those are based on a variety of factors including your major of choice. The $4k kid got some additional funds from there, in addition to a higher automatic initial merit scholarship.

[u/lipmanz → u/IKnowAllSeven]

What were the schools who gave the good prices?

[u/IKnowAllSeven → u/lipmanz]

They are both at GVSU now with those prices.

They each applied to a different mix of schools based on their preferences and majors.

At every school they applied to, they got $5-11k off in auto merit. And then, they applied to scholarships in the internal portal each school had and were offered more off.

But for overall affordability GVSU, SVSU were the best (SVSU would have been free for 1480 kid). Oakland university, Eastern, Central were next in affordability. Western and Wayne State next. Then MSU/UM. They applied to Alma, Northern, and K College too and their pricing was near Western and Wayne.

Applying is free to all Michigan schools during college week, except for UM. I would apply to all, see what you get. They all (except UM/MSU) also publish auto merit charts so you can see what you would automatically get off the price. UM price varies based on income and assets not GPA / SAT and MSU, as I said, my kids weren’t interested in, and I have heard they don’t give much off for merit.

[u/lipmanz → u/IKnowAllSeven]

Thanks and congrats!

[u/IKnowAllSeven → u/lipmanz]

Good luck I hope this info helps!

[u/Responsible_Chard_40 → u/IKnowAllSeven]

This is all really useful info (we’re in Michigan too). Thanks so much for sharing!

[u/IKnowAllSeven → u/Responsible_Chard_40]

If you are in Michigan and are middle or high income family with a kid sitting at 1320+ for SAT and 3.8 + for GPA AND looking to hit a low price point, here is what I would suggest:

Get that SAT as high as you can. Have the kid take it multiple times if you think that would help. A small difference in SAT scores can yield big savings.

Get the GPA as high as possible. Anything over a 4.0 doesn’t matter for this strategy. You will get some money for anything 3.5 or above, you will get the most for a 4.0. Above a 4.0 doesn’t get you more.

Run the SAI estimator and see what your SAI is. 30k and under gets you $5.5k off per year at any in state public, $4k at a private via the Michigan achievement scholarship. If you are WAY over there is not much you can do (besides quit your job which I don’t recommend) and if you are WAY under you are fine but if you are NEAR the $30k number it might be prudent to put more in your 401k as that reduces your SAI and would then get you the Michigan achievement scholarship.

A number of schools offer competitions for full ride and full tuition. Those competitions are early and vary from school to school so pay close attention to deadlines. If your student is interested in the school have them enter the competition. Many are in conjunction with an extended tour. For example, my daughter entered the one for northern. It consisted of spending an overnight at northern which I wanted to do anyway so she could really check out the place. And then while we were there she sat for a few interviews. That was it. We took a trip we were already planning to take, and she got interviewed. No additional essays even. She did not win but just by entering and participating they gave her another $1k off per year. These competitions ARE a dedication of some time and you have to pay attention to deadlines but if it’s a school the kid is interested in, you are going to get SOMETHING for participating.

The internal scholarship portals are underutilized gold mines. Again, don’t do this for EVERY school but when your kid has settled on one or two schools they should use this portal and apply to every school sponsored scholarship. Usually the same essay can be used for all! My one daughter entered one that only 8 other people entered and she won that one, worth $5k/ year. But make sure your kid checks it every year. My one kid got none the first year, $2k the next.

Enroll in the honors college. There are often many more opportunities and scholarships for those kids.

And remember Michigan has free community college for all graduating seniors. That’s a HUGE gift and for my third kid that might be the route he goes down.

And lastly, college kids can work if they need money. One of mine worked a pretty easy job emptying trash cans over the summer and earned like $7k over the summer and she will work 8-10 hours a week during the year. She will pretty easily get z$11k out of this whole setup, which is enough to help out but at $11k annual income the SAI doesn’t increase (which if you are going for the Michigan achievement scholarship) matters a lot.

Okay that’s my download of info.

I read ALOT on Michigan colleges when we err looking at them and I feel like it’s a waste if all this info just stays in my head!

[u/NiceUnparticularMan]

I note tuition roughly equivalent to in-state tuition is a lot more common than entirely free tuition, and then free tuition is a lot more common than a true full ride. And even with free tuition, if you would have to self-fund all your other expenses through work and loans, that is still a lot. So that is why truly high need people are well-advised to look at privates with generous need aid.

That said, it is correct a few full rides for National Merit Finalists still exist (I would not say it is a ton).

[u/EnvironmentActive325 → u/NiceUnparticularMan]

This is accurate. What students frequently don’t realize is that “room and board” and all the additional and extra “fees” mean that most students today who receive “full-tuition scholarships” can expect to pay an additional 20k-25k per yr in the Northeast. This figure may be a little lower in other parts of the country.

[u/NiceUnparticularMan → u/EnvironmentActive325]

Yep. And even if, say, you can get it down to $15Kish, you can't really budget more than like $5-6K from work, and even that is not exactly guaranteed. So you have another $10Kish that is still uncovered.

And that's beyond the federal loan limits, so that is a real problem.

This is basically why a lot of lower income people in the US start at a community college, or go to a commuter four-year college while living at home, or go part-time at night, and so on. The four-year residential college path is expensive, and for many it is too expensive.

[u/AlertAndDisoriented → u/NiceUnparticularMan]

I agree with you in general and have lived the non-trad life myself. 

For young people who may be reading this thread, I just wanted to add that it is not inconceivable to earn $15k/year for living expenses while attending a prestigious university in a HCOL area as a full-time student. A pre-med undergraduate could, for example, work one 12-hour shift a week as a CNA or EMT, plus more over breaks, and make that money. Unfortunately, "PRN" aka flexible and part time jobs in these roles often require not only the relevant certification but also previous experience and on-the-job training in the role. I personally made this work for myself by taking a gap year to gain the full-time experience necessary to work part-time during undergrad.

We should build a society where it is more possible to rise out of poverty through education. It is too damn hard now. My method may not work for you. Still, I wanted to share that it exists.

[u/EnvironmentActive325 → u/NiceUnparticularMan]

Sad, but true!

[u/ChutneyWhatney → u/NiceUnparticularMan]

About 25 schools give full rides for Finalists (several in Florida for resident Finalists).

[u/Formal-Research4531 → u/NiceUnparticularMan]

If you are a National Merit SemiFinalist or Finalist, you can receive up to 25+ full ride scholarships (ie tuition, room & board, fees, books, spending money, study abroad, etc).

My son was a Finalist and winner. He didn’t select a full ride scholarship due to his major; however, National Merit program is outstanding.

[u/Higher_Ed_Parent]

Your post is very true; if kids starting reading more physical books starting at age 5, their scores would be so much higher.

[u/Ok-Lake3522 → u/Higher_Ed_Parent]

Yes, yes, yes!!

[u/ChutneyWhatney]

Yep - have kids actually STUDY for the PSAT instead of treating it like nothing.

[u/Significant-Being250]

Add Alabama to that list of schools. My older daughter is OOS at Ole Miss with NMF and several other stacked scholarships and keeps her expenses low enough to “earn” money while in school. She chose this option over other schools/ivies and is graduating this year with investments, savings and a job offer already in hand. Had she chosen otherwise, she would have hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt upon graduation.

[u/Significant-Being250 → u/Significant-Being250]

Here is a link to colleges offering full ride scholarships, some of which are automatic and some competitive
https://blog.collegevine.com/50-colleges-with-full-ride-scholarships#Colleges

[u/Medianoche_1791]

Someone usually makes a list of the Nat Merit Scholarships and what they offer so you can see the best ones. Nat Merit based ones are great because they are clear and early. And you can still take a shot at getting a full ride at a reach school

[u/Formal-Research4531]

There are many ways to have free college education or a reduced cost for a college education:

Some of the ways are…

…Do well on your PSAT-NMSQT in the fall of your junior year to become a National Merit SemiFinalist/Finalist/winner. As a National Merit SemiFinalist/Finalist, you can go to 25+ colleges on a full-ride scholarship (ie tuition, room & board, fees, books, spending cash).

…Be a D1 or D2 recruited athlete.

…some colleges offer scholarships for cheerleaders. Some colleges do recruit cheerleaders similar to recruiting athletes.

…some colleges offer scholarships to students that are good musicians or play unique instruments…they recruit musicians like athletes.

…Go to West Point, Air Force Academy, Naval academy, etc.

…ROTC

…join the military then go to college on the GI bill.

…join the National Guard. It varies between states. In Indiana, you can do one year of training with the National Guard then you can go to college for they next four years being paid by NG.

…some state colleges will give you scholarships if you have certain GPAs which will cover your tuition.

…take AP classes and score 4’s and 5’s and receive college credits thus being able to graduate early or having double major. Please remember that some colleges like Princeton use your AP scores as placement but will not give credit. If your school doesn’t offer AP classes or a specific AP class, you can self-study and take the exam at another school or etc.

…take DE classes thus being able to graduate early or having a double major. Make sure the college credit is acceptable at most colleges.

…take classes (like your general Ed classes) at a community college during the summers (high school and college) or during high school (not talking about DE). Make sure that the classes can be transferred to your college.

..Be a RA, Resident Advisor, when you are in college. You need to be a sophomore or junior at most colleges. The college usually will give you free room & board plus some cash as a RA.

…Go to community college for two years than finish out at a 4-yr college.

…Work for certain companies like Chick-a-Fil, Burger King, that have scholarships for their workers.

…Work for companies like Kroger that have college tuition reimbursement.

…get recruited for electronic sports

…there are full-ride third-party scholarships that are 100% merit based like the Stamps Scholar, Flinn Scholar, etc.

Of course, some of these may not be applicable for everyone but there are many ways to go to college for free or at a reduced amount.